We tried the new section of Upper Don Trail: Off-road access to Stocksbridge and beyond from Sheffield
The new section is a “step forward” toward a “fully-accessible route all the way from the city centre to Langsett”
A vital missing section of the Upper Don Trail - a cycling and walking link between Sheffield city centre and Langsett - has been opened to the public.
Access to woodlands behind Yorkshire Water’s Wharncliffe Side water treatment works will allow walkers and cyclists to bypass a long section of busy, narrow road leading to Deepcar.
“Oughtigate” - as it has been dubbed by tireless volunteers working to have it opened - is situated just the other side of a bridge over the Don inside the 350-homes Outibridge Valley estate in Wharncliffe Side.
Upper Don Trail Trust, who have overseen efforts to secure the route - say it is a “step forward” toward a “fully-accessible route all the way from the city centre to Langsett”.
The new gate leads to a 500-metre-long access road which narrows onto a trail leading up to the Trans Pennine Trail and then on from there to Deepcar and Stocksbridge - road traffic free.
Crucially, another new bridge over the Don will soon allow access from Oughtibridge Valley to Oughtibridge village.
This means non-motorists heading west will be able to avoid the highly dangerous and taxing detour up Jawbone Hill - otherwise known as Cote de Oughtibridge - to rejoin the Trans Pennine Trail.
As someone who lives in Stocksbridge, there are two alternatives to Jawbone when cycling home from the city and neither is appealing with a 10-year-old boy for company.
One is a brutal climb up to the trails above Beeley Woods, eventually crossing Jawbone near to a junction with the Trans Pennine Trail.
The other is to just cycle along the narrow footpath beside Langsett Road North and Manchester Road as zooming cars woosh by. Not ideal.
So when I heard about this I was literally doing wheelies and met up with Upper Don Trail Trust (UDTT) Chair Simon Ogden to have a look.
The new section is only about 500 metres long and comprises of a an access road through trees beside the river before winding uphill and narrowing as it joins the Trans Pennine Trail.
But it’s a far less arduous and far more enjoyable route than the previous alternatives.
I should stress here that the newly-reclaimed section is not yet bike-ready but UDTT is currently raising funding to upgrade it for wheelchair users, cyclists and horse riders “as soon as possible”.
Another bridge over the Don connecting Oughtibridge Valley with the village - funded by developer David Wilson Homes - was always part of the deal.
Although the new estate has been in place for a couple of years, work on the connecting bridge and path has so far failed to get underway.
But now - thanks to a funding top-up from South Yorkshire Combined Mayoral Authority - a contractor has been secured and Sheffield City Council hopes to have the bridge in place by spring of 2027.
Simon said: “The trust and the people living here have been really pushing the council to get on with it because they bought houses here on the promise that there would be a walking link into the village.
“At the moment they’re having to walk along this really pretty dangerous road with a very thin footpath. There are a lot of houses here and the point of the bridge is to encourage people to walk and cycle.
“This is a step forward but the ambition is to have a fully-accessible route all the way from the city centre to Langsett and this bit (the section behind the water works) will need upgrading.”
So far Oughtigate has attracted a fair amount of censure in terms of accessibility, however Simon added: “We just need a bit of patience. We’ve got a foot in the door now.
“We have funding in our sights and now we have this permissive right of way potential funders will see that we’re ready for the next stage. “
Going forward the new Yorkshire Water section will be maintained by an army of Oughtibridge volunteer stewards, taking care of path maintenance, litter picking, reporting issues such as fallen trees and fund raising.
Alastair Harvey, lead countryside and woodland advisor at Yorkshire Water, said: “Hopefully everyone can find enjoyment in the space, and we look forwarding to working with the Trust going forward.”